The Tipsy Turtle
by TMNT-Queen
Summary: "Raph could take care of himself. It was Leo that Donnie was worried about." Rated T for one word. (Also, no hate to Splinter. I respect him and was really devastated at the end of S3.)


**The Tipsy Turtle**

It had been a bad fight.

He knew it was coming - honestly, after all these years of his most obstinate brothers arguing, he'd learned to read the signs. But the signs never really told him _just_ how bad it would be. And this time was no exception.

After many glares, the storm that had been brewing all day long finally came - resulting in three consecutive hours of intense screaming, swearing, and throwing things. Raph stormed out of the Lair and didn't return for the rest of the night.

But Raph could take care of himself. It was Leo that Donnie was worried about.

Instead of going to the dojo to blow off all the steam, the leader had locked himself into his bedroom. Despite the numerous times his family had tried to get him to emerge, Leo refused to come out. No sound made it past the concrete walls.

For all intents and purposes, Hamato Leonardo wasn't even there.

And then, well past midnight, he staggered out of his room into the kitchen, where Donnie sat working on another project. The purple-banded turtle jerked upright as his brother ambled over to the fridge and started digging through with slow, uncoordinated movements.

"Leo? Are you alright?"

No response. _Oookay then._

Shrugging, Don turned back to his work...only to drop his newest edition of the T-Phone at the sound of glass hitting the floor. He turned with wide mahogany eyes to see Leo standing in a pile of what used to be a bottle of...was that beer?

"Sorry," Leo mumbled, bending over to try and clean up the mess. "Reflexes aren't th' greatest right now."

And it clicked. "You're drunk. Leo, why? _How?_ It's not like you had a secret stash in your...bedroom..." Donnie trailed off at the slightly smug look in his sibling's bloodshot eyes.

Well _that_ was new information.

The smug look vanished as the eldest stared down at the glass, at the blood starting to well up from new cuts on his feet, at the liquid pooling around him. He sighed, then, suddenly just so tired of it all.

"Let me help," the genius offered quietly.

"I really don't need-"

"Leonardo."

"...fine."

Donnie set down the now-slightly-battered phone and stood up, carefully making his way past pieces of glass.

Ten minutes later, he had Leo's feet bandaged and their owner sitting on his bed. The leader himself was starting to nod off, but there was a pinched expression on his face. "Headache?" Donnie guessed. Leo mumbled something under his breath in reply.

"Alright. I'll go get some Advil and water. Just wait here."

"Like'm gonna go somewhere else," came the slurred reply.

Donnie sighed as he walked back into the kitchen and started to sweep up the remnants of the beer bottle. Truth be told, he wasn't entirely sure how to deal with this situation. Raph he could handle - treat him like a child and baby him into bed and you were good to go. He'd forget about it by morning.

But this was _Leonardo._ This was completely new territory.

Donnie had absolutely no idea what to do.

He settled for throwing away the glass shards and washing his hands. Then he grabbed the promised medicine and water and went back to his brother's room - where he found, unsurprisingly, Leo already asleep. Instead of waking him, he just set the coveted items on the night stand.

The purple-banded ninja gazed at Leo for a long moment. His heart swelled with pity for the eldest, who had never known peace like the others had. At an extremely young age, he had been thrust into a world of harsh training and regimen. All freedoms were taken away, and all fun time disappeared. It was a constant mantra of "Protect your brothers. Keep them safe. You are their future. Do not let them down."

Oh, yes. Donnie was fully aware of all the - quite frankly - bullshit that Splinter had force-fed his "chosen one" for all those years. But there was nothing that he, or any of the others, could do to stop it. And so nature took its course and Leo was shaped into a machine so willing to do what he had to do to protect the Clan...even at the expense of his own happiness. At the expense of his own life.

So it was no wonder that Leo was in his current state. Even with Splinter long gone, the memories and vetting remained.

Another sigh escaped Don's mouth and he pulled the blanket further up around his sibling's too-taut shoulders. _It'll get better,_ he promised silently. _I'll find a way._

And if Leo shifted in his sleep and a faint smile appeared at last on his worn face, who was to say?

 **A/N: ...this one-shot has quite literally been in the works for about two months. I wrote it bit by little bit, trying to get my thoughts together. I've seen a few stories like this where it's Leo instead of Raph - and yeah, I know that it's another _Leo book_ on my profile. I just connect more with him than the others, okay?**

 **Anyway, I don't know how you feel about this chapter. I don't know if you'll love it or hate it or just feel sorta...meh. *shrugs***

 **Please review.**


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